


Left Hand

by FallLover



Category: Van Helsing (2004)
Genre: AU, Amnesia, Angels, Angst with a Hopeful Ending, Blood, Blow Jobs, Body Horror, Canonical Character Death, Character Death Fix, Demons, Dwarves, Exhibitionism, F/F, F/M, M/M, Magic, Multi, Necromancy, Other, Pining, Torture, Vampires, Voyeurism, Werewolves, genderbent Carl, genderbent Van Helsing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-22
Updated: 2020-04-21
Packaged: 2020-05-16 15:26:47
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 17,183
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19320922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FallLover/pseuds/FallLover
Summary: Gabrielle Van Helsing showed up on the Order's doorstep with no memory or record of who she was, but a penchant for destroying monsters. After a recent case ends, she's sent to Transylvania to check on the questionable problem of Vlad Dracula, and see just what the Order might be dealing with.





	1. The Relatively Short-Lived Case of Dr. Henry Jekyll

\- 1888 -

Gabrielle Van Helsing knocked on the rather innocuous shack door on the edge of the city of Paris. This far out, there was still forest, but the nearest cottage was a ways away. The moonlight was helpful, but it was still a pain to get around in the dark, and there weren’t many electric lamps in this area.

After a time, the door slowly creaked back and a face peered out at her from the crack. “Yes? Can I help you?” The man’s voice was quiet, and a bit shaky. He looked up at Gabrielle. She was tall and big, wearing a thick coat for warmth.

“I’m a bit lost,” Van Helsing said with a smile. She couldn't help her size, but a smile sometimes worked. “I was hoping I could borrow some light to look at my map?”

The man blinked at her. “Why don’t you just head back to the city? I’m sure the lamps are—"

“It would only be a moment,” Gabrielle said. “I promise I’ll be out of your hair in no time.”

The man considered for a bit, sighed, and opened the door.

Gabrielle stepped past him and he shut it again. She looked around. The shack wasn’t much to look at. A smallish one-room area. A bed, a chest, a small fireplace that was lit and warm. A table with various scientific implements on it. The man walked over and pulled out a sheet to cover up the table.

“Sorry,” he said. “Private business.” He was shorter by about a head than Gabrielle – which was typical, she was taller than most people – and in the firelight he had sickeningly pale skin, like he was ill. His hair was greasy and unkempt, and his eyes were red from lack of sleep. He wore multiple layers to keep the chill out. It was Autumn, but the cottage wasn’t exactly cozy.

“No problem,” Gabrielle said, looking around again. She pulled a sheet of paper from her pocket and walked to the fireplace. “If you do manage to make gold, look me up. I’d be happy to join in the endeavor.”

The man blinked at her, then smiled faintly. “Are you an alchemist?”

“No, but I have a friend who is. No luck yet, though.”

“Well I’m not an alchemist, either. Not… really.” His smiled faded and he looked away.

“So what would you say you are, Dr. Jekyll?”

The man’s gaze shot back to her and his eyes widened. He stepped back and grabbed a knife that had been sitting on the table. “What? Who told you that name?”

“I don’t mean you any harm,” Gabrielle said, staying by the fire as she put her paper back in her jacket. “I just want to talk.”

“Plenty of people _just want to talk_ ,” Jekyll replied, his face leaning towards a glare. “And then they get the ties and weapons out while they talk.”

“I’ve got none of that on me,” she replied, raising her hands. “See? Just little old me.”

“So talk then.” He didn’t put the knife down. “How did you find me?"

"I have my ways," Gabrielle said. If he ran, she wasn't going to show her hand.

He snorted. "What do you want?”

“I wanted to ask you to come with me to Rome,” Gabrielle replied.

“…Why on Earth would I go there?”

“Penance. For your crimes.”

Jekyll blinked, then laughed. “I’ll admit, asking me to turn myself in isn’t quite new, but no one’s tried this way before.”

“I’m not asking you to turn yourself in to the police. But if you come with me, you can put your talents to use by helping people. Atoning for what you’ve done.”

“You didn’t come here alone, did you?” Jekyll asked, moving away from the door. “There’s others out there, waiting to tie me up and take me away.”

“I actually came alone,” Gabrielle said. She wondered if he was planning to kill her without witnesses around to help or see. “And… to be honest, I didn’t expect to offer you the chance to turn yourself in. I wasn’t expecting a… a human.”

He blinked at her. “…What?”

“Well I know that humans commit murder and rape and assault and the like, but to be honest, I expected that you’d be a vampire or some kind of were. Instead you’re just… human.” She frowned. “It’s almost disappointing.”

Jekyll stared at her, clearly confused.

“But since you’re human,” she continued. “You have other choices. You can still change. You can still try to make up for what you’ve done.”

“…You’re one of those religious fanatics aren’t you?” Jekyll asked. “You want me to join some church and live as a monk or something? Put my faith in God and all that nonsense so He can fix me? Well that’s not happening.”

Gabrielle sighed. “Please, be sensible. This doesn’t have to end in violence.”

Jekyll laughed. “Of course it does. It always does.” He lunged at her.

Gabrielle dodged aside easily, even in the confined space.

Jekyll stumbled, but quickly turned and ran at her again. She grabbed his hand and snatched the knife away before he knew what was happening. She looked at the knife thoughtfully, then lowered it. “Are you done?”

In answer, he reached into his coat and took out a pistol.

Gabrielle stilled. “Dr. Jekyll, please, there’s no need for that.”

Jekyll fumbled with it. “First you… you lie to get into my home, and then you threaten me, and then you rave about magical creatures…”

She stepped forward and he aimed the gun at her, even though it wasn’t ready for use. She put a gloved hand out. “Give me the gun, Doctor. I don’t want to hurt you.”

He continued fumbling at it. She reached out and easily snatched it from him. People always saw how tall and big she was and underestimated how fast she could be when she wanted to be.

Unfortunately she hadn’t counted on Jekyll scrabbling at her arm as she did so. He grabbed at her jacket sleeve, yanking it back slightly, and managed to half-tear her glove off. She stepped back and put the gun in her jacket, then looked at the glove. “That was really un—"

He jumped at her. She dropped the knife so she could hold him back, grabbing his collar and one of his arms. He still scratched at her face, going for her eyes. He brushed her forehead with his fingers.

Then he screamed.

She froze as he struggled from her grip, and she dropped him. He fell to the ground and cried out again, curling around his hand like he’d broken it. She looked down and saw that his hand was… was smoking.

“My hand! My hand!” He was crying now, and shaking. “You burned my hand!”

She frowned at him and knelt. He scrambled away. She stood up and looked at him again. “What happened?”

He glared at her and snarled back. “You burned my fucking hand!” The smell of burning flesh filled the air and he cried out again.

* * *

“So what’d you do, stuff his hand in the fireplace?” Rabbi Carla Goldstein asked some time later. They sat together outside the cottage as Order agents cleared the area out. Jekyll had been taken away by agents to treat his hand and start the detention process.

“He touched my forehead,” Gabrielle replied. She was leaning against a tree.

Carla looked up from her notes to look at the other woman. “…He lost three fingers.”

Gabrielle sighed. “I know.”

“Did he smash his hand into your forehead?”

“No. He was going for my eyes. He brushed my skin.”

“Ew."

"He was desperate. It was during the scuffle."

"I see. He confess to anything?”

“No. But he didn’t bother pretending he wasn’t Dr. Jekyll. Not really.”

“Mm.” Carla wrote some more in her notebook.

"As far as I can tell, Jekyll’s lab was just junk. Drugs. Nothing radical. He was an ordinary man who liked killing and torturing and assaulting and severely making a disgrace of himself. Just a human using stimulants. Nothing special."

Gabrielle straightened her gloves. “I’ll need a new pair of these, I guess, while I fix them.” They’d torn a bit more than she realized during Jekyll’s mad scramble. “And maybe some kind of face covering, I guess.”

Carla laughed. “Now, now. You know you’d hate that. I think if someone is grabbing at your face, they deserve what they get.”

Gabrielle sighed. “Yes I would hate it. Sweat too much.”

They stood in silence for a bit while Carla continued writing. Gabrielle watched the Order agents move around.

“We’re to head back for reassignment after this,” Carla said. “Got word about an hour ago. Something big, apparently. Ish. Not sure.”

“Well it’s not like there’s much else to this,” Gabrielle said. “It was just one man committing all these crimes. Not much else to go on.”

“And he is definitely human,” Carla said. “Did a bunch of the tests already. They’ll run some more where he’s headed, but still.” She considered Gabrielle. "I thought your... magic touch thing only worked on monsters."

"As did I... Usually humans only get nightmares. The things I saw when he touched me. Ugh. Such butchery and cruelty. Humans need better hobbies.”

Carla looked up and blinked at her. Gabrielle stared back. Carla burst out laughing. “Was that a joke? You made a joke? Oh you’re terrible, Gabby. Terrible.”

* * *

The Order headquarters in Rome was an understated building on the outside – a smaller synagogue that didn’t get many visitors. The guards were heavy, but mostly hidden. Inside was a cavernous place, and that was only the top floor. The rest was underground. Gabrielle followed Carla down a set of narrow stairs into the main area. It was filled with activity. There were practice areas for fighting, dozens of tables for research and weapons experimentation. Teachers taught rapt students about different kinds of monsters over dissection tables, or pointed out a healing process during a medical procedure.

They walked over to a planning table. Imam Rashida Rahal and Mother Superior Giselle were listening to a report by Priestess Haruka Takahashi. They all turned to see the new arrivals.

“You’ve returned to us,” Giselle said. She wore a nun’s garb – which was typically better for her work as a medic – and had a warm expression on her face.

Rashida looked thoughtfully at Gabrielle, then walked up to her, making the taller woman meet her eyes. Rashida was small, but was fierce when she needed to be. And she could easily tell when others were upset. She was one of the shoulders Gabrielle leaned on most often in her times of confusion.

“It’s all right,” Gabrielle said. “It’s fine. Just… the Jekyll case was weird, I guess.”

“Apparently Gabrielle can kill – or at least injure – demons with her forehead now,” Carla said. “I support the use of more headbutts in the future, but maybe that’s also a bad thing… I don’t know.”

Haruka rolled her eyes. Haruka was a tall woman, almost as tall as Gabrielle, and was sorting through papers on the table.

"Well at least the assignment was completed without a death,” Giselle said. “That’s a new record for you, Gabrielle.”

Gabrielle laughed. It wasn’t a pleasant laugh.

“Now, your next assignment,” Giselle turned to the table. “You’ll be heading to Transylvania to help one of our local branches there. They’ve been having trouble with a vampire named… Drack-li? Drakul?” She looked at the paper again. “Dra-cula.”

“Vlad Dracula,” Gabrielle said.

“You’ve heard of him?” Haruka asked.

“No… At least I don’t think so.” She considered. “Maybe someone spoke about him before… I don’t know.”

“But you know his name?” Haruka persisted. “Perhaps a memory from your past?” Haruka was an expert on psychology, and was often there to try and help Gabrielle figure out who she’d been before she’d stumbled across the order, with no memory of who she was or were she came from. No one local recognized her, and they could find no records anywhere of her. Her clothing – battered armor – was dated, but also clearly custom made, and didn’t match any armor they could find. Gabrielle had looked and looked over the years, but felt that she’d never find out who she was. Gabrielle thought Haruka was too hopeful at times, but Haruka was great when Gabrielle lost her hope that she’d ever figure things out.

Gabrielle stepped closer to look over the documents on the table. Maps. Lists. Written letters. A few artist’s renditions of the man in question. “His face is… oddly familiar… but I don’t see anything from it.”

“Perhaps this trip will be more worthwhile than just ridding the local area of an ancient scourge,” Giselle added. “He’s been quiet for a while, but the local branch heads have been trying to oust him. Apparently he’s recently gone back to grave robbery. He has a small cult of his own, staffed by some sort of goblin-ghoul creatures and a number of lesser vampires. They’re powerful, and have resisted attempts to cut back on them. The local branch is headed by an old Order family, House Valerious. Many of them have perished in the battle against Dracula. Currently, two siblings head the branch: Anna and Velkan. But they requested assistance. Order forces are spread thin right now, unfortunately, and we don’t know much about the region or what’s going on. House Valerious has usually been good on its own, and doesn’t communicate much with the main office, and every branch always asks for more help than they need. We want you to do a sort of reconnaissance mission. See what we’re up against, then send back information about what forces you’ll need.”

“You don’t believe their request for assistance?”

“I think it’s been a few years since we’ve had any hard information from the region, and I’m less than ready to send a full squad of people to go deal with anything over there until we know what’s going on. Plus, you’re better than a squad.”

“Flattery will get you everywhere, Mother Superior.”

Giselle laughed. “Don’t let Emily hear you say that. She’s still annoyed I forgot our anniversary, though I can’t blame her…”

“I did remind you,” Haruka said.

“I was in the medical wards for three days,” Giselle replied with a sniff. “And I didn’t want to just stop by and say, ‘Hello love, just a kiss and then I’m back to work.’ I wanted to make it special.”

Haruka chuckled.

“Can I still bring Carla?” Gabrielle asked.

“As if I’d miss a chance to visit the Valerious libraries,” Carla said. “I’ve heard stories…”

Giselle smiled. “That’s settled, then. You’ll leave in the morning. You can look over the materials we have on this ‘Dracula’ and his followers on your journey.”

* * *

“So he’s got a veritable army of these goblin creatures,” Carla said, looking over their papers while the pair lounged as much as was possible in their tight quarters aboard their ship. Well it wasn’t _their_ ship, but they were on it. The storm was too heavy for them to be up and about, and neither had experience on ships to help with the work, so they stayed out of the sailors’ way. Gabrielle lay on her small bed with her eyes closed, but wasn’t asleep. She liked listening to Carla talk to her about things.

“But he’s also got three primary generals of a sort. They’re apparently his lovers, too. Powerful vampires we should also be wary of. If Dracula is one of these older, more powerful vampires with some kind of grasp of magic, he may be able to grant his followers special abilities, too.”

“Why hasn’t he been killed yet?” Gabrielle asked. “I mean, yeah, he’s powerful, but there’s a dozen ways to kill a vampire.”

“He’s been immune to most of the known ways,” Carla replied, looking over more of the papers. “Doesn’t burn in fire. Didn’t drown in holy water. Doesn’t turn to dust or burn when staked with blessed wood or silver. Isn’t bothered by garlic. Thick-skinned, too. The last time someone tried to cut his head off, the axe broke and Dracula turned into his monster form and ate almost everyone within the vicinity.” She considered a drawn version of his monster form. Such depictions were rare – people usually never survived seeing them. “Ugh, what an ugly creature, although you have to imagine the spectator’s perception of the beast was exaggerated…” She frowned. “People even say he can walk in the sunshine… but they also point out that the weather there is so cloudy that the average vampire probably could, too.”

“What about his generals? We could kill them. Deal with fewer enemies.”

“Wily, creative… apparently they seduce a lot of their prey. At least some or all of them can enthrall. And they’re powerful enemies, too. Dracula is strategic. He tends to send his army of goblins out to harass hunters, cutting their numbers by simply overwhelming and scattering them, then sends his generals out to weed out the stronger ones, leaving the populace free for the picking.”

“Why not just leave? Go somewhere without hunters?”

“Let me see, let me see… Ah. Apparently a previous Valerious head comments, after calling the Order respondent a… well, it’s not very nice, they say, ‘As stated many a time before, my ancestor ensured that Dracula and his ilk could never leave Transylvania while my line lives.’ And then there’s something about divine retribution or something. Probably a curse or some sort of pact.”

“Well they haven’t left so far, I suppose, so let’s hope that’s accurate.”

“I’ll look into it some more when we get there.”

Gabrielle considered. “So long as their line lives, hmm? How many of their line are left?”

“Of the principal line, there’s Anna Valerious and Velkan Valerious. Their parents passed away some years back. There should be cousins somewhere, though, I imagine…” She frowned. “You think Dracula is going after the family? Killing them to secure his freedom?”

“It’s something he could be trying for.”

“When we get there I’ll send a cable to Rome, request more bodyguards for the remaining heirs.” Carla looked up at Gabrielle. “So… you’ve never been to Transylvania, correct?”

“I have not.”

“But you vaguely recognize Dracula?”

“There’s something… Whenever I think about it, it’s like… when you remind yourself to do something but then forget later on what you were supposed to remember. …I don’t know.” Gabrielle was annoyed with herself. She’d listened to explanations on amnesia, trauma… but she felt like she should just be able to remember it if she could feel the memory there. Shouldn’t reaching for something as often as she did count for something?

As so often happened, she hoped this latest adventure would go somewhere. Lead to something. They never did. But as Haruka said, hope wasn’t a terrible thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unfortunately I can't quite do justice to Dr. Jekyll. There's a great webcomic called "The Glass Scientists" that stars the character by someone who truly loves the source material, if you want to check that out. In my fic he's really just a scientist who uses stimulants, mostly to get high and deal with some of his issues. The number and modus operandi of the murders made the Order think they were dealing with some kind of demon. Jekyll still fled England after his crimes got to be too much.
> 
> In this AU, the Order is more of an inter-religious organization that stretches across multiple regions and faiths to deal with lots of supernatural creatures (or, as is the case with Jekyll, some questionably supernatural creatures). It's how they gather information and recruits.
> 
> I have not watched the live-action series starring a female Van Helsing. It's on my list of things to see, but this fic has no connection to it, and there's no plans for that to change.


	2. Transylvania

The port was bustling, and Gabrielle and Carla used their funds to take a post to the town where the Valerious family estate was located. The countryside was beautiful, filled with huge, green trees and mountains. The weather was cloudy and the air a bit chill, but otherwise it seemed they’d left the storm on the sea, and the traveling was relatively easy. Carla was bundled up in layers. Gabrielle simply wore her light armor under her coat, and wasn’t overly bothered by the temperature. She never had been. She was more bothered by the goosebumps she was getting looking around at everything.

This place was strangely familiar… She wondered, as she'd wondered so often in places that seemed familiar, was she from here? Were the answers here? Most likely not. But still, she always hoped.

She’d been found years earlier… or really, she’d _found_ the Order. Her first memory was stumbling into an alley, her head pounding from a headache, her legs weak, her vision blurry. She found a fight – two Order soldiers against a larger group of vampires. The Order soldiers were losing. Gabrielle waded into the mess and fought the vampires off, making any she touched with her bare skin burn. When no vampires were left, she collapsed. The Order members took her back to their base to take care of her. When she woke, she couldn’t speak properly. She could understand words, but had no sense of language, and no idea how to care for herself, or who she was or where she was from. Thankfully it didn’t take too long to learn. She clearly had training in combat, and excelled at every martial art she was shown. Her ability to burn evil at a touch was strange, and the religious leaders claimed she was blessed by the heavens.

Gabrielle didn’t feel blessed. She heard voices when she wasn’t focused. It was usually a woman’s voice, and she could never understand what was being said. Meditation didn’t fix the problem, and the doctors she’d spoken to had typically started the ‘maybe locking you up is a good idea’ before someone had pointed out that Gabrielle didn’t _act_ crazy and was rather good at killing weres and ghouls and vampires and all the other monsters they came across.

And she wanted to know where she was from. Who was she? How did she lose her memory? She had dreams sometimes that looked more like something she’d see on a temple painting. Knights in strange armor battling each other alongside monsters. Places she couldn’t recognize. People she didn’t know. Did someone out there miss her? Were they looking for her?

Years passed, and here she was, resigned to a life where at least she worked to help others using the skills she had. She had no desire to leave the life. No desire for anything other than answers. The Order’s resources meant she could search for clues. Surely someone had seen her appear that night? But no one materialized. She could travel and look for clues elsewhere, try and find the places in her dreams, if they were real and not flights of fancy. Too often her memories were like now: vaguery she couldn’t quite place, that felt sort of familiar, but not in a way that was helpful.

They left the carriage and walked the rest of the way to the manse, passing through the town as they did so. The town was busy in its usual activities. The newcomers were given curious looks, but little more. Some vendors tried to get their attention. Carla led them towards the manse, ignoring everyone who grabbed at her or called out to her. Gabrielle drew more attention for her height – she was a bit unusually tall. But she just looked over the crowd and followed Carla. She had most of their luggage, being the stronger of the pair. Carla carried most of her writing materials.

They arrived at the edge of the estate – really more of a small castle – which was guarded by Order guards. Carla presented their paperwork and the guard shortly ushered them in, calling along to the next guard, and so on, to send them to whoever was in charge. They ended up in a nicely set up living room with vaulted ceilings. Armor, display weapons, tapestries, shelves fill of books, and so many other decorations filled the place. A large fireplace helped keep the place warm.

“I wonder why they haven’t hired a small army already,” Carla wondered, looking around at the wealth on display.

Gabrielle stepped over to a window and looked out. She could see a courtyard beyond. “I think they did.” Carla stepped over and looked out. Her eyes widened.

In the courtyard below, dozens of cots were set up for the injured, while medics ran around, tending to them. Soldiers still in uniform and hale enough to walk marched around, giving and following orders, carrying equipment.

The door to the room Gabrielle and Carla waited in opened again and the pair turned to see a woman walk through. She wore heavy leather armor and carried a sword at her hip. Her hair was dark brown and tied back in a crown around her head. Her eyes were hard as she looked at them both. There was blood on her gloves and her shirt, and mud on her shoes. “I understand you’re the emissaries from the Order? Where are the soldiers we requested?”

Carla looked at Gabrielle and stepped forward. “Have I the honor of addressing Lady Anna Valerious?”

The woman narrowed her eyes. “Yes.”

“Thank you. I’m Rabbi Carla Goldstein. This is my companion, Gabrielle Van Helsing. We—Well, you see… the Order wanted to do a reconnaissance mission first, and see just how necessary the soldiers are, and how many should be sent…”

The woman blinked at her. “Are you fucking shitting me? We sent letters. We’ve told you people what Dracula and his forces are like!”

“Yes, well… um… there was some concern with the fact that he’s been here for so long and you haven’t reached out before and it was just… odd, to reach out now.”

“Because we’re desperate! You’re annoyed that we didn’t beg for help before so you refuse it now?”

“My companion—“

“I’ve been known to take out some of the harder supernatural enemies out there,” Gabrielle said, stepping forward. She was a good head taller than Lady Valerious, but kept her distance, so as not to possibly tick the other woman off. Lady Valerious surveyed her. “I understand he’s difficult to kill and he has a large force under his command.”

“Well at least someone read the damn letters.”

“What happened?” Gabrielle asked, indicating the courtyard.

Anna sighed. “We tried to lure out and kill Dracula’s werewolf. It slaughtered a group of young people last week and we knew we couldn’t wait for the Order to step in. Unfortunately we didn’t have enough people, and the beast proved too strong. It killed many of us, and… my brother, Velkan.”

“You have my condolences,” Gabrielle said, noting how Anna’s lip tightened. “The beast escaped as well?”

“It fell off a cliff. We couldn’t find it. We assume it was carried away by the river.”

“Does Dracula have more than one werewolf?”

“It’s possible. If he could turn one or knows where to get more. They can’t leave Transylvania but he can still get messengers out. We don’t find all of them.”

“What of his generals?”

“Anastasia, Marishka, and Renfield. They’ve been keeping a low profile the past few weeks for whatever reason, although someone said they saw Renard a few days ago, messing about in a local tavern. They’re all powerful, and we haven’t been able to kill them, either.”

“I’d like to see his base, get a layout of the place before I report back. Do you have any maps or anything of it?”

“No. Scraps, from what my ancestors have cobbled together from past excursions. But nothing whole. And there’s no point trying to get close. My people aren’t ready for a full incursion, and you’ll die if you try to get close.”

“I was planning to sneak in.”

Lady Valerious laughed. “You? Were you going to pretend to be a tree?”

"We should go during the day," Gabrielle said. "When they're weakest."

"Dracula and his generals don't remain in the castle during the day," Anna replied. "He has a secondary fortress that we can't access, and they stay there. During the day, his army of Dwergi infests the primary castle."

"Then I want to see what they're guarding," Gabrielle said. "Something important enough for two fortresses. And maybe leave some surprises for the vampires."

"Surprises don't do much, other than anger them. The last time we did that, we killed one of the generals – they were weaker back then – and Dracula razed the village, slaughtering many. It was when he captured his newest bride."

"Ah. Well then... scouting should be fine."

Anna frowned, then sighed and said, "We'll go in the morning. Gives us plenty of time to head out and return."

Anna assigned them rooms, and Carla and Gabrielle dropped off their gear. Carla got to work on the library happily, but Gabrielle wandered to the courtyard with the injured. She was no medic, but she made herself useful, carting away bedpans, wiping sweaty brows, carrying bandages and rags. The soldiers stopped giving her suspicious looks. She dictated a letter for one man who wouldn't leave to see his son born, and wanted to leave him something. She spotted Anna at one point, doing much of the same. Carla was out as well, sitting with groups and leading prayer.

At some point the medics dismissed Gabrielle and she went to eat. She'd certainly eaten worse, and was grateful to be fed.

Anna sat nearby and said, "Thank you."

“I can't stitch wounds closed, but that... that all, I can do."

Anna smiled. "Where are you from? Van Helsing is an odd name."

"It's not originally mine. I rescued a scholar from excoriation by vampires. He gave me the name shortly before he passed. We'd become friends, and I had no family."

"So you're an orphan?"

"I have no idea. 20 years ago I appeared in Rome, wandering, half-dead, and ran into a group of Order members fighting a group of werewolves. I killed the monsters and collapsed. I have no idea who I am or how I ended up there."

"So your first name?"

"Mother Superior Giselle noticed that I'd spend a lot of time near a statue of the Angel Gabriel, in contemplation. I'm not sure why I always feel drawn to it. So the name was given."

Anna considered this, then frowned. "Wait... 20 years? You defeated a pack of werewolves when you were... what, a teenager?"

Gabrielle smiled. "I have no idea what age I am, but I have not seemingly aged since my arrival."

"So you're not human?"

Gabrielle shrugged. "Who knows? In all other ways I appear to be. Perhaps I just age gracefully."

"...Have you traveled much, working for the Order?"

"Yes. It's most of what I do."

"And you came here on a ship?"

"...Yes?"

Anna sighed longingly. "I'd love to see the ocean someday. I've heard about it, but I've never seen it."

"Then how about this: if we defeat Dracula, you and I will go see it together?"

"Truly?"

"Yes."

Anna smiled. "It's a promise."

* * *

 

A lone rider made his way to the biggest bar in town that night, and later returned to Dracula's castle early in the morning. He left his horse for the stablehands. Renfield went quickly up to Dracula's favored bedroom, where the count lounged with his brides, Marishka and Anastasia.

Renfield was a gangly 'young' man, who had been sired in his early 30s. Far healthier than he'd ever been in life, he still looked sickly pale. He dressed richly, and had a smug smirk on his face as he bowed to his lord.

Dracula had been watching Marishka and Anastasia pleasure each other before they fell asleep, exhausted by their efforts and the rising sun.

“Report,” Dracula ordered, glancing down at Renfield.

“The Order’s forces are heavily debilitated, my lord. They’ll not be able to launch another assault for some time.”

“Excellent,” Dracula replied, smiling fondly at the other man.

“There is more news, sire.”

“Speak it, then.”

“Newcomers from the Order abroad. Only two. A warrior and a rabbi. They consulted with Anna Valerious, but nothing more is known of their plans.”

“Did you see them?”

“No my lord. They remained in the Valerious estate.”

“Hmm… they may be foolish enough to attack. We’ll ready ourselves. Break in our new werewolf before then.” Dracula gestured to Renfield, who crawled forward gleefully. Dracula put his hand on the other man’s head. “Always so good to me, dear boy, aren’t you?”

“Anything for you, sire.”

“Then I have a reward for you. Put your pretty mouth to more use, hmm?”

Renfield hastily undid Dracula’s pants and pushed them aside, freeing the vampire’s cock. Then he put his head forward and took him down. Dracula tilted his head back, his fingers tight in Renfield’s hair.

Chains shook nearby and Dracula rolled his head to smile at the wolfman chained to a nearby wall. Or half wolfman. He was chained so tightly that he couldn’t escape, and his frequent switches between human and beast made him shake. He still glared daggers at the vampire and strained at his chains.

Dracula smiled fondly at him.

* * *

They set out in the morning on horses from the stables. Only Gabrielle and Anna went while Carla did a deep dive of the library. They left the horses in the woods and crept their way farther in. Gabrielle kept them quiet, but followed Anna’s directions.

They entered the lower parts of the castle. The place was a bit of a shambles. They had to kill a few Dwergi, which Anna was good at. But they came across no vampires.

“So why not just blow up the place?” Gabrielle asked quietly as they went along. “With enough explosives… just set it up, wait for the vampires, boom.”

“There’s no guarantee they’d perish. Dracula has survived so much. And my ancestors apparently tied part of the curse keeping him here to the castle. Dracula cannot destroy it himself, but so long as it’s here, we know where to find him. If it were gone, it might unleash him on the world.”

“Charming.”

They wandered more, observing the machinery.

“What is he building?” Gabrielle asked.

“No one knows,” Anna said. “Years ago he hired a Dr. Frankenstein to work for him. Make some new monster, but we successfully attacked and killed the man, and supposedly destroyed the creation. Perhaps Dracula is continuing the work, though.”

“A new kind of monster? Why not just summon a demon or something? Far simpler.”

Anna gave her a confused look. “I… I don’t know.”

“New monsters either mean he’s just bored and fucking around, or he needs it for something specific. Something a werewolf, vampires, Dwergi, and thralls can’t provide him. We figure out what his plan is, maybe that helps stop him. Maybe destroy him forever.”

Anna considered this as they moved along.

They found themselves in a large courtyard of some kind, filled with…

“What are these?” Gabrielle asked, looking at the gelatinous pods, nearly the size of an adult human.

“I have no idea,” Anna said. She covered her nose. “They stink something awful, though.”

Gabrielle pulled a scarf out of her pocket and handed it over. “Put that over your face.” She pulled out another and wrapped it around her own as she neared one pod.

“What are you doing?” Anna asked as she tied the scarf on.

“I want to see what they are.” She pulled out a knife and stabbed a pod. It made a slurching noise, and she began digging at it.

“It’s almost like an egg…” Anna said.

“Perhaps vampire eggs?” Gabrielle said, continuing to dig. Anna helped, pulling out membrane and other detritus. Finally they hit the center and revealed…

“So that’s what a baby vampire looks like,” Gabrielle commented. “Creepy sucker.”

“But vampires are dead,” Anna said, looking at the skeletal babe. “They sire other vampires by feeding on them. They don’t give birth.”

“Perhaps this is what the good doctor was helping him with,” Gabrielle said.

“Frankenstein was a necromancer?” Anna asked. “It would explain the grave robbery…”

“Can’t say for certain,” Gabrielle said, “But—”

There was a roar. Anna looked towards the source of the sound. “No… it survived.”

“What?”

“The werewolf. We thought it dead… unless Dracula has more or made a new one. We must kill it!”

Gabrielle grabbed her arm. “I’ve seen what it takes to kill one. You can’t do it alone.”

“You killed a whole group of them.”

“They were already weakened.”

“Are you a coward?”

“I came to fight Dracula with just one person for backup, so I don’t think so.” Gabrielle looked towards the source of the sound again. “But werewolves _are_ weaker during the day, too. Come on then.” They traveled up several flights of stairs and what felt like around an entire labyrinth of corridors, avoiding more Dwergi. But the roaring came from an area too heavily guarded.

“It’s too much,” Gabrielle said. “Another day.” She frowned and looked down a hall they hadn’t gone down.

“What is it?”

“Something… familiar.”

“Well you go do that, I’m going to kill the werewolf.”

“Anna!” Gabrielle hissed. But the other woman had already raced away. Gabrielle wanted to follow, but something pulled her to that hall. She pulled out her crossbow and walked carefully. She wasn’t afraid. But… curious. Shortly she spotted a lone man standing in a courtyard. He had dark hair and wore rich clothing. Tall, almost as tall as her.

“Usually when I approach humans, their heartrate speeds so quickly that I can almost dance to the beat. But you…. Yours is so… very steady.” He turned to her. She shot him twice in the chest, once in the face, getting his left eye. He gasped, stumbled, then laughed. He pulled the barbs out, ignoring the burning as blessed silver touched his fingers. “So hasty, and we haven’t even been introduced.” He met her eyes. She didn’t flinch away.

He frowned. “I know you.”

“Do you?” Gabrielle's expression was sharp, and she didn't give anything away. Or at least she hoped she didn't. She clearly couldn't just kill him, so maybe talking would get her somewhere and... he recognized her?

His eyes widened and he smiled. “Gabriel! By my death…” Then he frowned and sniffed the air. “But you smell like human. And where are your wings?”

She frowned at him. For a moment, her back felt... too light. Then it was gone.

He stared at her for a while longer before understanding dawned and he burst into laughter. “Don’t tell me, oh this is rich… You’re human? And I’m a vampire, oh how the tables turn…”

“What are you doing with the eggs?” Gabrielle demanded. The eggs. The mass of whatever those creatures were, ready to... to whatever it was they were made to do.

Dracula scoffed. “Completing my dear Carmilla’s vision. A world of vampires, taking as we wish.”

“…Carmilla?” The name twigged something in her memory.

Dracula frowned at her, but then his smile quickly returned. “You… don’t remember? Human and amnesiac, eh? Even though you still have that acrid holy stench about you.” He reached out a hand. “Join me, Gabriel. Mother may have abandoned you, but I never have. It’s clearly meant to be! With you at my side… And I can bring your memories back.”

“You already abandoned me,” Gabrielle said, but it... it felt like a memory. She’d said it before. The words were odd. Familiar but… strange.

He glared. “A mistake on my part. Never again.”

The world seemed to be falling away around Gabriel. She had made her choice. Taken her stand. She'd reached out and been rebuffed. She--

The werewolf roared again. Dracula looked up in surprise and Gabrielle took the chance to run away. She heard him roar at her. She didn’t quite know why she ran, only that if she didn’t, she was going to agree to work with him. It was the first real lead she had, but… but there was something all wrong about it. She wouldn’t fall to that. Not to him.

 _Not again_. She frowned.

Again?


	3. End Times

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp... It's not pretty, but it is done. For those who stuck with this, I'm sorry for the delay, and thank you so much for reading!

Gabrielle and Anna ran into each other on the edge of the castle. Both were too pale and shaking.

“What happened?” They asked each other at the same time. They looked back and then kept running away from the castle. It was barely midday. They got back to the horses.

“My brother,” Anna said as she got up on her horse. “He’s alive. But he was bitten by a werewolf. Dracula is keeping him prisoner. He’s still in the early stages of it… and supposedly Dracula has a cure. He forced me away, but…”

“Dracula has a non-fatal cure for lycanthropy?” Gabrielle asked.

“So Velkan said. He doesn’t know if it’s a lie Dracula tells him or what. Possibly a lie. But the Order might know of something…?”

“Not that I’ve heard. But Carla can search.”

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost. What happened?”

“I confronted Dracula.”

“And… you survived?”

“Yes.”

“What happened?”

“We talked. He claims he knows who I am. Who I was before… before Gabrielle Van Helsing.”

“What?”

“There was something… Something in what he said may be true… but I recognized him, too. I said something that felt like something I’ve said before, but in… a long time ago.” She frowned. “Carmilla. Was there a vampire named Carmilla here?”

“Centuries ago. She preyed on young women. But she was slain. I forget by who. It’s an old story. They say she sired Dracula.”

“…I think I knew her.”

“…That’s impossible.”

Gabrielle stopped her horse and looked off into the woods, then redirected her mount down a little used path.

“That way is a cliff!” Anna called.

Gabrielle kept going, and Anna followed, cursing. But once the trees thinned, they could see a path leading down the cliff face.

“How on…? I didn’t even know this was here,” Anna exclaimed, guiding her horse down. “I’ve lived her my entire life!”

“There used to be fewer trees,” Gabrielle said.

“Used to…?”

They made their way down to the shore, and there was a large cave at the base. Gabrielle dismounted and stood at the entrance, staring at it. “I’ve… been here before,” Gabrielle said. Her expression was dazed. She remembered scrabbling at the beach. Her eyes burning. The stench of the water. Everything had _smelled_ so strongly. No wonder the humans were mad, smelling all this all the time…

“When?” Anna asked, dismounting as well. Her voice brought Gabrielle partly back out of the daze, but Gabrielle still felt… adrift.

Gabrielle walked into the cave and stepped to the side, by the wall. Her fingers strayed over what Anna realized were crude drawings of… birds?

Gabrielle smiled. “He loved to draw…”

“Who?”

Gabrielle blinked and stepped back, getting into a fighting stance. “There’s someone in here.”

Anna readied herself.

“I mean no harm,” came a deep voice. “I only wish to be left alone.”

“Forgive us for trespassing on your home,” Gabrielle said. “We are simply passing by.” She frowned. “May we see your face?”

“…You will not wish to.”

“Why?”

“I am… deformed. The villagers chased me away when last they saw me.”

“I will not do that. I swear it.”

Whoever it was slowly approached. They were even taller than Gabrielle, and had to bend to be in the cave. They wore a bunch of rags knotted into a cloak. Their face was in shadow.

“What… are your names?” they asked.

“I am Gabrielle Van Helsing.”

“Anna,” Anna replied.

They waited, but the stranger made no reply.

“Have you a name?” Gabrielle asked.

“No. I was given none.”

“Then have you one you wish to bear?” Gabrille asked.

“You… can choose your name?”

“I did,” Gabrielle said.

They stared at her. “Very well… Ursa, then.”

“The bear,” Gabrielle replied.

“Yes. I think it’s fitting.”

“Will you stand with us in the sunshine, Ursa? The dark is hard to see in.”

Ursa hesitated, but walked out of the cave. Ursa didn’t flinch from the sunlight, or burn. Gabrielle relaxed slightly at that. Ursa looked them over. “Are you looking for something?”

“I… once stayed in this cave,” Gabrielle said. “A long time ago.”

“I have resided here for some years,” Ursa said.

“Where are you from?” Anna asked.

“I…” Ursa frowned. “I would rather not say. You have been polite thus far, but I do not know you.”

“Do you need protection?” Gabrielle asked. “I am an agent of the Order, an organization that protects the world from supernatural threats. But we have many branches that would give you asylum.”

“That… I wish…”

“I could bring you clothes,” Gabrielle said. “Your rags cannot be comfortable, or protective.”

Ursa laughed. “Yes. I feel like a bag of flotsam.”

“Come with us to my estate,” Anna suggested. “My family is in charge of the nearby town. We will give you something. Clothes, a place to stay… It will be better than out here.”

“But… you barely know me.”

“That is true of her,” Anna said, pointing at Gabrielle. “Yet she stays under my roof. You are too close to Dracula for comfort.”

“That is true.”

* * *

They made their way back to the estate. Ursa had few belongings, so it wasn’t much trouble. They entered the estate in a hidden way, so as not to garner too much attention, mostly for Ursa’s comfort. Anna ordered a room be set aside for them, as well as a bath, clothes, and food.

Gabrielle reported to Carla. Carla got to working on researching the cure and Carmilla. Anna checked on her people.

They met again for dinner. Carla was introduced to Ursa. Now that Ursa was clean and wearing something large enough for their size, albeit not well-cut, they were a tale, deathly pale, but relatively average looking person. Their dark brown hair was tied back, now. Ursa was incredibly curious about the house, and very nervous about breaking things. Gabrielle had to ask them to come over and sit at the dinner table. Finding a bench for them to sit on was a trial, but they finally managed something. Ursa studied the way the others ate before gently working on their own food.

“I know you don’t want to, Gabrielle,” Carla said, “but we could return home for more fighters and firepower. If Dracula is building some army somehow out of baby vampires, and is just looking for a power source, we need a bit more than well… just us. And of course I can better look for potential werewolf cures. The Order has said they don’t know of one, but we see them so rarely, perhaps they need a fresh set of eyes or something?”

“Come all this way and you’re already leaving?” Anna commented.

“I’m not interested in running,” Gabrielle replied, shooting a _look_ to Carla. “But you may be attacked here again. What I can recall of… whatever Dracula and I knew about each other, and what you’ve told me, he’ll be antsy.”

“Dracula will come here?” Ursa said, scared. “I… I have to go…” They stood up, and Gabrielle put a hand out.

“It’s all right. We’ll protect you.” She put a hand on Ursa’s right arm, and they stilled.

“You don’t understand. I… he’s looking for me.”

“Why is he looking for you?” Gabrielle asked.

“I… I’m Frankenstein’s… monster. His creation. His life’s work, really.”

“What do you mean?” Anna asked. Her hand had gone to the ever present daggers on her belt.

“Frankenstein wanted to create life, in a sense. To bring the dead to life. And he did. He assembled and brought me to life. Dracula supported the project.”

“He wanted a way to bring his children to life,” Carla said.

The others looked at him.

“If you were in a room of dead vampire eggs, and there’s some energy-building machine… I’ve been reading Frankenstein’s notes. Well… and some other things. They were kind of all stuffed into one of the bookshelves and well… Anyway. That must be what he wants.”

“He needs me to power his machine,” Ursa said. They pulled aside their shirt to reveal a sort of hollow heart almost but not entirely planted into the center of their chest, seemingly filled with lightning. “Whatever gave me life, he thinks to redirect into his progeny.”

“How did you learn all this?” Gabrielle asked.

“Dracula… captured me, once. I was young. Afraid. I’d seen the villagers kill Dr. Frankenstein… I was scared, I fled, but Dracula found me. He tried to convince me to help him. That what he had on offer would be better than wandering the wilderness alone. I believed him. But… the pain. It was awful. Being strapped into that machine and used like a secondary lightning rod… I broke free and fled. I’ve been hiding ever since.”

“If Dracula manages to revitalize that many vampires,” Anna said, “The world would never survive.” She met Gabrielle’s eyes. “You need to get Ursa out of here.”

“You’ll help us, then?”

“Of course.”

They heard shouts outside the room. Anna stood and walked to the door just as a guard burst in. He looked to Anna and said, “Milady, there’s a werewolf attacking!”

“To arms! But don’t kill it!” Anna pushed the man out and ran towards the shouting.

“What?” Carla said as Gabrielle ran out the door after Anna.

“Should we…?” Ursa asked, looking at Carla.

Carla frowned and looked around the room. “Come on. There’s a place in the library we can hide.”

Gabrielle ran out into chaos. There was a central yard in the part of the manse the werewolf had attacked, surrounded by a tall wall for guards to look out, or people to walk, or a werewolf to run. It meant not a lot of room to maneuver, but it also meant the beast was quickly cut off. The werewolf leapt aside as guards shot at him. But there were a lot of guards, and only one wolf.  The beast was slowly cornered.

Anna approached the creature as he growled at them.

“Velkan,” she called. “Please, it’s me!”

The creature growled and reared up.

Gabrielle shoved Anna aside and caught the wolf mid-attack, but the momentum of his attack pushed them over the wall and into the yard below. There were snarls and Gabrielle shouting, a sudden scream that sent Anna rushing forward from where she’d fallen, and then silence.

Anna and the guards came to the scene with the werewolf slumped, still, in the dirt, and Gabrielle crawling away. She was breathing heavily and her hair was a mess, her clothing ripped.

“Did you…?” Anna demanded, looking to her brother. She was shocked to see the fur retreat to reveal a mostly nude man wearing a tattered loincloth. He shuddered and she ran to him. “Velkan!”

He blinked his eyes up open and frowned, then murmured, “Anna? Is… Where?”

“You’re home, Velkan. You’re _home_.”

“I can’t stay, I…” He sagged in her arms.

“Get his room ready,” Anna called, and held him up in her arms. “We’ll set guards on it.”

There was a scuffle nearby and she turned to see more guards aiming crossbows at Gabrielle, who was standing still and glaring them down.

“What is going on?” Anna demanded as she walked forward. “What are you idiots doing?”

“Milady,” one of the guards said, “She…”

“I’ve been bitten,” Gabrielle said, turning to Anna. And Anna could see, there, on her neck, beneath the ripped shirt, was a messy bite mark, surrounded by red blood and dirt. Gabrielle herself was pale and seemed a bit dazed.

“You…” Anna said, her face pale. “But…” She shook her head. “Come with me.”

Gabrielle frowned and followed, while the guards watched, warily. Anna found her way to Velkan’s room and set him down, carefully on his bed, tucking him in. She turned to the guards who had followed behind them. “Set a guard here, make sure our people are treated, make sure the vampires aren’t attacking elsewhere, and report back to me what you learn.”

“Yes milady.”

“Now get out.”

The soldiers saluted her and left.

Anna looked up at Gabrielle. “Dracula has a cure.”

“So you’ve said. And so your now unconscious brother has said. But—”

“You won’t turn for about 48 hours. That’s how long it takes.”

“I thought it was the full moon,” Gabrielle said.

“My great-grandmother studied werewolves. She was a renowned scholar on the subject. Moonrise triggers transformation in younger werewolves, but the phases have nothing to do with it.”

“Why 48 hours?”

“It’s about how long it takes the toxin to circulate through your bloodstream. Then the change is triggered by the first moonrise. Grandmother thought it was the magic element of it. A werewolf bite is the largely inactive poison, moonlight the catalyst.”

“So I could stay indoors, perhaps.”

“Unless you were deep underground, your body would still sense it, and maybe even then. The magic in this is too strong.”

“48 hours, then.” Gabrielle sighed. “Damn.”

Anna shook her head. “Thank you. For not killing him.”

“I tried my best,” Gabrielle said. “You shouldn’t be here alone with him. He could turn at any moment.”

“We should be safe enough, soon,” Anna said as she pulled away, leading Gabrielle to the door. “Young werewolves are weak in sunlight. Although I don’t know what triggered his change, now. It’s not _that_ late, and he shouldn’t be able to control it.”

“Hopefully Carla turns up something.” Gabrielle leaned against a wall and frowned.

“You should get cleaned up,” Anna said. “I’ll make sure the guards don’t bother you.”

“I… Yes.”

“I’m sorry,” Anna said. “You saved my life. Thank you.”

Gabrielle smiled. “No need to apologize. It happens.” Gabrielle turned and walked away, and Anna wondered at the tug on her heart, and left to go make sure the mansion and the village were safe.

* * *

It was nearly sunrise when Renfield made it back safely to Dracula’s castle. The older vampire was glaring daggers at any Dwergi he came across, knocking them aside as they got in his way.

“My lord,” Renfield said, bowing. “Velkan Valerious is back in the Valerious household.”

“Of course he is, the miserable cur. Well… that problem will solve itself, I suppose. He’ll kill plenty of their fighters before they kill him.” The creature had managed to break out after Gabriel’s… _distraction_ , and only in the dark could Dracula send out searchers. Well, fate had smiled on him, it seemed.

“We… could collect him, my lord.”

"No. Leave him. I’m interested in how my dear friend will react to him…” Dracula smiled. “Whatever it is, I’m sure it will be amusing.”

“…There is another matter, my lord.”

“Yes?”

“One of the Valerious guards says there’s a new resident at the manse.”

* * *

The vampires didn’t attack. Velkan had seemingly arrived on his own. Gabrielle slept through the night and late into the morning. Carla was at her side when she woke up.

“How you feeling?” Carla asked, putting her book down.

“…A bit muzzy,” Gabrielle replied, sitting up and rubbing her eyes. “What time is it?”

“Time for food.” Carla went to ask the guards outside to get something. “Anna’s orders,” she added ruefully, indicating the guards. “They won’t stop you from leaving, but while you were sleeping…”

“It’s a good idea,” Gabrielle said.

Carla snorted. “So while you were fighting Velkan, I was reading with Ursa. They’re very good, by the way. Excellent memory recall, great at close reading… We went through a bunch of notes and books in the library. Turns out, Carmilla used to rule this area, alongside Dracula. Pretty ruthless, the pair of them. She was eventually killed by, if the stories are true, an angel.”

“An angel?”

“Yes. There’s a statue in the library I think you should see, once you’ve eaten.”

The food finally arrived and Carla continued talking, switching subjects. “Velkan hasn’t transformed back into a werewolf.”

“It’s daylight, why would he?”

“Werewolves at the start of their transformations flip back and forth once a full change has occurred. It takes at least a few months before it stabilizes properly, even in the daytime. But Velkan hasn’t. And he changed back for no apparent reason last night. You didn’t injure him that badly. Sometimes a fatal wound can trigger a return to humanity before death, but usually they’re dead first, and he’s neither dead nor dying.”

“How much reading did you and Ursa do?”

“Oh you know. A lot.”

“It’s possibly just luck,” Gabrielle continued, before drinking up her stew.

“Maybe.” Carla stood and said, “Once you’re done, get dressed. I’ll be outside.”

* * *

Carla led her to the library, where Ursa and Anna were reading through books. Anna, on lycanthropy. Ursa, some kind of journal.

Ursa smiled at them and said, “Glad you’re awake,” to Gabrielle.

Gabrielle nodded, then looked to Anna, who smiled back at her.

“Likewise,” Anna said, quietly.

“I’m not a wolf yet,” Gabrielle said, feeling slightly nervous. “Now there was something you wanted me to see?”

“Over here,” Carla said, leading the group over.

“It’s ridiculous,” Anna commented, following along. “Truly.”

“Fascinating, I think,” Ursa said.

They stopped in front of a statue near one of the larger windows on the wall. Gabrielle walked around it. The statue had wings fanning behind it, held a sword in its left hand and had its right hand raised.

“I don’t know what I’m looking at,” Gabrielle said. “It just looks like an angel.” Something was off about the statue, though. She couldn’t quite figure it out.

“Tell me you don’t see it,” Carla said, looking at Anna.

Anna scowled.

“Why don’t you try mimicking the pose?” Ursa offered.

“Why?”

“Because the statue looks exactly like you,” Carla said.

Gabrielle frowned and looked back at it. True, their hair was of similar length and style. And the features were… something.

 _‘It’s by far not your best work,’_ _Gabrielle said as she leaned on the doorway, watching Darius work._

_‘You wound my very soul, Gaby,’ Darius said as he continued to focus on the statue._

_‘This is heresy, you know,’ Gabrielle said. ‘We don’t get statues in our likeness.’_

_‘Church do it all the time,’ Darius replied._

_‘But not… they’re not supposed to see us. The_ real _us.’ Gabrielle sighed. ‘I should have left already.’_

_‘I’m glad you stayed. For my family’s sake. For the village’s sake.’_

_‘It was the least I could do.’_

“—statue is supposed to depict the angel that killed Carmilla,” Carla said, when Gabrielle was cognizant enough to realize the woman was speaking.

“What?” Gabrielle said.

“Look at the inscription on it.

Gabrielle looked down. There, at the base of the stone, a small Hebrew inscription, reading ‘Gabriel’.

“Maybe the book was wrong,” Anna said.

“Darius’ notes were very specific,” Carla said. “The angel Gabriel slew the vampire Carmilla, and Darius carved a statue in her honor, which was placed permanently right here.”

“Exaggeration,” Anna said, but she sounded skeptical.

“Darius never exaggerated,” Gabrielle replied, staring intently at the statue. “He was the most pragmatic man I ever knew. Easy to give orders to, anyway. Trusted you, deeply, if you earned it. And it wasn’t his best work, ether. I told him not to finish it. He ignored me.” She blinked and realized the others had gone silent, and looked at them.

They all stared back at her in surprise.

“What?”

“Did you just hear yourself?” Carla asked.

“I… but… I don’t know who Darius is.”

“You sounded like you did.”

Gabrielle blinked, and looked back to the statue. “I… there’s something, but… I’m not an _angel_ …”

“It could explain the…” Carla looked at the other two. “Well. Your _abilities_.”

“What, I’m some blessed being in whose light demons burn?” Gabrielle snarked back.

“Well… maybe. It’s said that the angel Gabriel is the messenger of God, who passes Her word onto others, and the word of God is so holy that demons could not stand it.”

Gabrielle snorted at that, even as she felt a chill on her skin. She knew the stories. Had read them a thousand times. Looking for something. But they never rang so… true, as they did now.

“Is this all you learned?” Gabrielle asked.

“For this, yes. Nothing about a cure for lycanthropy.”

“We still need to get Ursa back to headquarters,” Gabrielle said.

Carla blinked, looked at Anna and Ursa, then back at Gabrielle. “Are you… Did you miss the part where you finally found something out about your past?”

“ _Maybe_ it’s my past.”

“You burn the corrupted by _touching_ them, you remember conversations with sculptors who’ve been dead for centuries. _Dracula_ knew who you were.”

Gabriella glared at the other woman and said, “ _Carla_ …”

“Velkan had burn injuries on him when a doctor checked on him, even though none of the guards used fire. I had to explain.”

Gabrielle looked away. “I…” She sighed. “It doesn’t matter. I may have found something, but Ursa is in danger. The whole world is in danger so long as Ursa is here. We need to get them to safety.”

“What we need to do is stay here and make sure Velkan Valerious doesn’t murder the remaining Order personnel left here. The only people keeping Dracula and his monsters contained.”

“We can handle one werewolf,” Anna said.

“When we arrived your people were recovering from _one_ werewolf attack like they’d just been in a war,” Carla commented.

“We can’t take him with us,” Gabrielle said. “It’s too risky.”

“And I would hardly let you!” Anna continued. “He is my brother!”

“There might be a cure back at the Order headquarters,” Gabrielle said, meeting the other woman’s eyes. Gabrielle could see the anger, but also fear, and concern.

“So find it and send it back! I won’t let you take him and kill him when I’m not there to stop you!”

Gabrielle blinked and looked away. “I wouldn’t…”

“If you’re an angel, who knows what you’d do,” Anna said.

“Dammit, I’m not—!” Gabrielle grasped at her hair, paused, breathed in, and put her hands down. She laughed. “You make it sound like that’s more dangerous than being bitten by a goddamn _werewolf_.”

“Are you… feeling all right?” Carla asked, nervously.

Gabrielle breathed in and out, opened her eyes, and realized the others were all staring at her in slight alarm. Gabrielle blinked and looked back at the statue. “I’m fine. For the time being.” She frowned. “We stay another night. I’ll stay in the library, see if something else jogs my memory. Carla, keep looking up anything that might be a lycanthropy cure. And send me anything that looks like history on Dracula and Carmilla.”

“And after tonight?” Carla asked.

“I get you and Ursa as close to headquarters as possible before… before it’s too late.”

Carla grimaced.

“You’ll carry my crossbow,” Gabrielle said. “You know what to do.”

“Don’t tell me that! I… We’ll fix this, Gabby. We will.”

Gabrielle snorted. “I find I’m hungry again.”

* * *

They all dove into their research. Anna had a stock that Ursa refreshed so that Anna could keep watch over her brother.

“Do you remember how you killed Carmilla?” Carla asked as it grew dark. Gabrielle was looking out a window to give her eyes some rest.

“No. Even assuming I’m actually _the_ Gabriel, I have no memory of it.” She frowned. “I… I think. It’s… It might just be suggestion.”

“Dracula knew you. He _called_ you Gabriel.”

Gabrielle sighed. “Well I don’t remember killing Carmilla.” She looked at the twilight over the town. “I should share watch with Anna, for when Velkan turns.” She walked out of the room, ignoring Carla, collected some of her gear from her room, and went to Velkan’s room.

The place was largely unchanged. There were two guards in the room, both with loaded crossbows, watching from the foot of the bed. Velkan was restrained to the bed, and still unconscious. There were more guards outside the room. Anna sat in a chair nearby, holding a book but not quite focusing on it. Her gaze split mostly between Velkan and sunset. She looked up as Gabrielle entered, and sighed.

“You won’t kill him.”

“I’ll try not to.”

Anna snorted. “If Dracula has a cure, we can find it and use it on him.”

“Even assuming he actually does, why would he have it?” Gabrielle asked. “If he’s been using werewolves in the place of Ursa to try and give life to his offspring, or using the werewolves to harass the town, what benefit does having a cure do him? I can’t imagine he managed to blackmail your brother into attacking you and your soldiers in exchange for the potential of a cure… Just to stick around and help Dracula give life to all those vampires and kill the world? Is your brother that desperate?”

“Can you say that in his place you wouldn’t be?”

“I am nearly in his place,” Gabrielle said. “And when the time comes, I expect those crossbows to aim at me and aim true.” Her expression was grim.

Anna turned away.

“We found it!” Carla said, walking into the room.

“What?” Gabrielle asked, but she was watching the retreating sun. Her grip was firm on her crossbow.

“The way to kill Dracula!”

Gabrielle pulled her weapon up, taking aim. Anna stood. Darkness fell on them all, and Carla didn’t continue her thought.

They all stood there, as the night slowly deepened. Velkan moved slightly in his sleep, and finally yawned and slowly blinked his eyes open. He frowned and looked around, flinched, and tried to sit up, but couldn’t, due to the bindings.

“What…?”

“Velkan!” Anna said, kneeling at his side. “I’m here. You’re home.”

“I… Anna. I’m sorry, I didn’t want… I wanted to go home, but the wolf… it twists everything.”

“It’s all right,” Anna said. She lightly brushed his cheek. “It’s all right. You’re safe.”

“No, you don’t understand. Dracula, he… He gets into your mind. Takes the wolf and… directs it. It’s like… being a puppet twice over. It’s horrible.” He frowned. “But I… I can’t hear him anymore.”

“Do you feel like you’re transforming?” Gabrielle asked.

Velkan looked up and frowned at her. “Who are you?”

“They’re with the Order,” Anna said. “This is Gabrielle. She’s a monster hunter.”

Velkan frowned and said, “So you finally came? A bit too late.”

“ _Velkan_ …”

He sighed. “No. I don’t feel like I’m transforming.”

“But it’s nighttime.”

He frowned and looked out. The moon was rising.

“I… I don’t feel anything.”

“Forgive me,” Gabrielle said, “But I don’t feel like I can trust you. You’ve just admitted to being controlled by two other forces.”

“I will stay here,” Velkan said. “Tied up. I think that’s a good idea.”

“You didn’t do anything before you left Dracula’s castle to stop the change?” Gabrielle asked. “He didn’t… order you not to change? Inject you with something?”

“No. I left in the mess after Anna broke in the castle. Then I was in the woods and… when I had some sense of things, I wanted to go _home_ , and that’s all I remember.”

“I’ve never heard of something like this,” Carla said. “Werewolves don’t just… suddenly recover.”

“Did you find out something on the cure?” Gabrielle asked, turning slightly to the rabbi, but keeping Velkan in her line of sight. She could smell that he was sweating slightly, and that he was a little afraid, but he seemed human. She frowned. She’d never been able to _smell_ someone’s humanity before.

“No,” Carla said. “But I think I know why Dracula might have a cure for lycanthropy.” She pulled up her book and frowned. One of the guards lit the lamps and Carla nodded her thanks. “I found a… sort of transcription of when Dracula was turned. Roughly, it says that God cursed him for his hubris, for becoming one of the devils, seeking inhuman power to rule like a god among mortals. That he held himself up so high, and so he would fall—”

“At the teeth of a dog,” Gabrielle finished. “He wanted to usurp the Mother, and place himself on that throne of heaven. Carmilla wanted power, and she took him under her wing. Together, they would take over the countryside… everything they could touch…”

Carla blinked and looked at her, but Gabrielle was looking away from then all, out the window.

_Gabrielle paced the cave, her wings folded behind her, her expression twisted in agitation._

_Vlad appeared, dressed as smartly as usual._

_Gabrielle turned to him, forcing a smile, but it quickly vanished as he came closer. “What have you done?”_

_“What are you talking about?”_

_“…Mother was right. You… What did you do?”_

_Dracula drew himself up. “We made ourselves stronger.”_

_Gabrielle walked towards him before even he could blink and grabbed his arm. He cried out and the scent of singed flesh filled the air._

_“You used sorcery to turn yourself into a monster!”_

_He snatched himself away, surprising her, and fell back, falling into a fighting stance. “You come here all the time, acting like I’m such a stupid little human, and you wonder that I don’t want better for myself? Well now I have it!”_

_“This is… This is madness! You think drinking blood will make you better?”_

_“I think someone who is immortal has no right to look upon those who strive for it. You will never grow old and infirm and die!”_

_“You’re a fool. Carmilla only wants power. It’s what your father wanted. I thought you knew better.”_

_Dracula scoffed. “So arrogant. You know nothing about me."_ _  
_

_“And you’re so full of shit that you can’t see what’s right in front of your face.” She turned away. “Don’t you see what I have to do?”_

_“What?”_

_“I have to destroy you."_ _  
_

_“No, you don’t.”_

_“You’re a monster. You prey on humans.”_

_“So join me,” Vlad said, walking slowly up to her._

_She turned to him, her expression aghast._

_“You chafe at your burden. I can see it. Join us. With you at our side, we’d be unstoppable.”_

_She continued to stare. She could see it, almost. His twisted vision of what he wanted. The world he’d rule. With her help…_

_“You will not,” Gabriel replied. Only, it wasn’t Gabriel._

_Vlad frowned._

_The voice that spoke through Gabriel was loud and made Vlad cringe in pain as it continued. “My daughter loved you, so she may grant mercy once. But your time will come.”_

“—rielle?”

Gabrielle blinked and looked around. Everyone was watching her.

“Gabby, you all right?” Carla said, lightly shaking her.

“I… what?”

‘You weren’t responding. You just stood there, staring at the wall, mouthing something.”

“I… I don’t know. It was a memory. Of Dracula. I think. I… I knew him.”

“All this time,” Anna said, “you _knew_?”

“No,” Gabrielle said. “I think…” she frowned. The memory she’d seen was there, but beyond it… nothing. She shut her eyes and grunted. “If I could just remember the rest!” She turned and slammed her hand into a nearby wall. The stone cracked at the impact. “Dammit!”

“It’s all right,” Carla said, soothingly. “It… was a long time ago.

Anna huffed and looked at Velkan. “So Velkan can kill him now.”

“He can control my mind,” Velkan said. “I won’t be able to—”

Gabrielle walked forward and grabbed his arm.

“What the Hell are you—!?” Anna yelled.

“Wait,” Gabrielle said.

Velkan stared back at her, his gaze slightly fearful.

Nothing happened.

Gabrielle let him go. “His lycanthropy is cured.”

“…What?” Velkan asked.

“You’re cured. Congratulations.”

“But how…?”

“Because I know how Dracula has a cure for lycanthropy.”

“What?” Anna demanded.

Guards shouted an alarm, and they all looked up. Gabrielle raced out, with Anna at her heels. They raced to the screams. Anna unsheathed her sword.

“They’ve come for Velkan,” Anna said. “If it’s Dracula.”

“Very likely,” Gabrielle replied.

“Are you okay to fight?” Anna asked as they grew closer to the screams.

“I’ll manage,” Gabrielle replied as they burst through the door… to the library.

They discovered a mob of vampires surrounding a snarling Ursa, who was fighting them off heroically, using their great arms to knock the weaker vampires aside, while guards struggled with the vampires on the fringes. There was blood and screams everywhere amidst knocked over books, suits of armor, and torn paper. Aleera and Verona personally grappled with Ursa, trying to tug them away.

Anna dove into the battle, fending off weaker vampires from the guards. Gabrielle took aim at Verona, who was closer, and fired. The arrow got her in the shoulder and she screeched. She turned to glare at Gabrielle, roared, and raced for the woman.

Gabrielle reloaded and fired again, but Aleera dodged. Gabrielle ducked as the vampire dove after her. The creature missed her entirely, swooped over the ceiling, and dived again. Gabrielle rolled to the side and Aleera missed. Gabrielle took aim again. This time, the arrow got the vampire in the ankle, and she shrieked again.

“Van Helsing!” Ursa roared.

Gabrielle looked up, trying to find Ursa, which was enough distraction for Aleera land right on top of her.

The vampire knocked the wind out of Gabrielle as they fell fully to the floor and Aleera used her monstrous bulk to pin the woman to the ground, pinning her arms to the floor. Up close, the full vampire transformation was truly hideous. It turned her flesh bluish gray, widened her jaw, and made her eyes red. Aleera leaned close and said, “Master said _not_ to touch you, but…” she leaned close and Gabrielle headbutted the creature.

Aleera yelled, her forehead burning, and the hit loosened her grip on Gabrielle’s wrists. Gabrielle yanked the crossbow around to smack it into Aleera’s head, knocking the creature over. Gabrielle straddled the creature and placed her hands over the vampire’s face..

Aleera’s scream filled the room, knocking Gabrielle back. Gabrielle got back up in time to see the last of Aleera burn away.

Gabrielle stood up and looked for Ursa and Anna. There were still a number of vampires, though their numbers had dwindled. Ursa, Anna, and Verona were all gone. The windows to the room were smashed. Gabrielle raced to them. She found Anna, dazed, on the ground. Gabrielle knelt by her side and Anna brushed her off. There was blood on Anna’s brow.

“She took… Ursa… Flew off...”

Gabrielle cursed and looked into the distance. “…Shit.”

* * *

They mopped off the rest of the vampires and saw to the wounded. Anna waved off getting looked over and went to check on Velkan, who was still safely tied up in his room. Carla had actually stayed there with him, talking about his experience as a werewolf with him.

“I’m used to Gabby,” Carla replied when Anna asked her why she’d risked herself. “I know what her touch does to the corrupted and the demonic. And you saw those burns. If there was any werewolf left in him, we’d know.”

“We have to go after Ursa,” Gabrielle said. “Dracula will use them to start the machine.”

“Even if he does,” Carla said, “they’re running out of moonlight.”

“I smashed up what I could of the machine on my way out,” Velkan said. “I wasn’t very… aware, and I think it was primarily to make it easier to escape, but I did. They won’t fix it all in a day. His Dwergi are fast, but not that fast.”

“Then maybe we have time to get there. And we’ll be attacking in daylight.”

“He’ll know you’re coming,” Anna said. “You slew Aleera—”

‘She killed Aleera?” Velkan asked.

Anna nodded. “Dracula will know one of his brides is dead. And he has spies who can confirm you survived. It’s likely how they learned about Ursa. If you two have a history, he’ll know.”

“Then he’ll know as I’m killing him, too,” Gabrielle said. She looked at Carla. “Stay here where it’s safe. I’ll come find you when it’s over.”

“But I should come,” Carla said. “I might be able to find the cure while you’re fighting!”

“The cure won’t work on me.”

Carla blinked. “What? Why?”

Gabrielle sighed. “It’s… blood. Angelic blood.”

“What…? How do you know that?”

Gabrielle scratched her head. “Centuries ago, I… I was in a battle. I fell, nearby. That cave where we found Ursa. I took shelter there. A human child found me, while I was half-mad from the pain. He brought me food and water, kept me company. When I was well, I promised him I’d return. I kept my promise.”

“It was Dracula,” Anna said.

“Yes. Although at the time he was just little Vlad. A sweet child. He was kind and smart. Charismatic. He grew into a handsome young man, as mortals go, I suppose. I thought he had a bright future.” Gabrielle looked away, looking back through the years. “A bright child interested in the sciences might collect some angelic blood for study, even young as he was. If nothing else, my bandages went somewhere. Certainly he used some for his rituals with Carmilla. It’s what gives him more power than other vampires. I found out just before I slew Carmilla. It was… another betrayal. The blood is a sort of… Well, it’s a lot of things. A catalyst, of sorts. Mine in particular burns away impurities. By touch it’s a brand. Injected into the bloodstream… It could feasibly destroy a toxin like what creates lycanthropy.”

“But that… The agony of it,” Carla said. “Velkan didn’t act like that.”

“You said I burned him,” Gabrielle replied. “He was likely already unconscious from the pain of that.”

“So we just get it to _you_ now!”

“My blood is still the same,” Gabrielle said. “I can’t exactly cure myself.”

The others stared at her.

“But… if you can’t be cured…?” Anna said, quietly.

Gabrielle grimaced. “I’ve accepted my fate. But I will use the last of my freedom to rescue Ursa from Dracula, and maybe injure him if I can.”

“You’ll need help,” Velkan said. “Let me go. I’ll come with you.”

“You only just came back!” Anna said. “You can’t go!”

“You’re going, aren’t you?” Velkan asked. “Someone has to watch your back.”

Anna scoffed. “Idiot.”

“I’m coming,” Carla said.

“Carla…” Gabrielle warned.

“Maybe it’s pointless. But right now your blood is diluted with whatever it is that turns werewolves into werewolves. If Dracula made this supposed cure from blood before whatever happened that made you how you are now, it might be purer than what’s in your system, and it could still save you.” Carla glared back at Gabrielle. “And I’m not giving up on you.”

Gabrielle met her glare, before huffing. “You’re an idiot.”

“I most certainly am not!”

“You’re right. You’re the smartest person I know.” Gabrielle sighed. “All right, then. Untie Velkan, get him some proper clothes, everyone eat something, and we’ll head out.”

* * *

They took a contingent of Anna and Velkan’s fighters, but told them to stay back while Gabrielle, Anna, Velkan, and Carla snuck into Dracula’s castle. The place was still a bit active. The Dwergi were there, working on machines. Gabrielle and her group crept carefully, with Carla staying in the back, holding a crossbow of her own and refusing to back off. She’d been on a mission or three. She knew how to creep.

It was late afternoon when they realized the vampires were nowhere to be found, and the great machine was barely repaired. And Ursa was nowhere in sight.

“Where the fuck are they?” Gabrielle snarled as they finally left the dungeons empty handed, no vampires in sight. Gabrielle stormed up the stairs, not letting anyone answer her. They’d already looked upstairs, and Carla was still busy looking through the papers in the biggest room, which seemed to be half office, half bedroom. The place was damp and empty.

“There’s nothing here,” Carla finally said. “A few small notes. But barely any library. Nothing of use. Certainly no cure.”

“Dracula has another castle,” Anna offered. She walked up to the window and pushed aside a curtain so she could lean out. She pulled a whistle out of her pocket and blew it loudly, then came back into the room. “Our people will start clearing this place out.”

“What if Dracula comes back?” Velkan asked.

“Then we’ll be waiting for him,” Anna replied.

“Why would he have a second castle and not just… stay there?” Gabrielle asked.

Anna shrugged. “Our father said it was to hide from hunters, not that we ever got close enough to him to do anything, even at this castle.”

“Where might it be?” Gabrielle asked. “Castles aren’t exactly easy to lose. And they have to be built. Paid for. There were workers involved.”

“You knew the man,” Anna asked. “Why don’t _you_ know?”

“ _I don’t know!”_ Gabrielle yelled before she picked up a table and threw it at a wall away from the others, where it smashed into bits. The others all flinched at it.

Gabrielle breathed heavily, twitching slightly, glaring at what she’d done.

Carla coughed. “They can’t travel in daylight, so either they went from the attack to the castle, or from here to the castle. Logically, it would make sense if they had some way to get there from this castle directly. That way they could escape whenever they wanted.”

“You’re assuming some sort of… underground tunnel?” Velkan asked, not taking his eyes off of Gabrielle. His hand hadn’t left his sword hilt.

Gabrielle still stared at the wall.

“Maybe,” Carla replied. “But that would imply the castle is somewhere nearby. If it’s somewhere your family never found, and Dracula knew magic, maybe there was some… magical means of travel.”

Gabrielle sniffed, loudly. Then she turned and walked over to another part of the wall.

“Gabrielle…?” Anna asked, quietly.

Gabrielle stopped by a large mirror in the center of the room. It was old, metal, tall, and wide enough to show multiple people at a time. They could see she was glaring at it.

“It stinks of vampire here,” Gabrielle said.

“Since this seems to have been part bedroom,” Velkan said, gesturing to the half made large bed nearby, “I’m not surprised.”

Gabrielle reached out and ran her hands over the mirror. Or she would have, if her hand didn’t go through the ‘glass’. She snatched her fingers back.

The others came closer.

“What on Earth?” Anna asked.

Gabrielle put her hand out to the mirror again, and her arm passed through entirely. She laughed. “It’s cold.”

“We don’t know what’s on the other side,” Carla said. “It could be a… a trap.”

“I don’t see many other options,” Anna said. “We haven’t found anything else.

“What about your soldiers?” Carla asked.

“They know to clear the place out and wait for my commands, then leave by nightfall if nothing happens.”

“All right, then.”

“Come on,” Gabrielle said, walking through.

The other side of the mirror was an ice-covered castle, in no place that Gabrielle recognized. High mountain walls towered on all sounds. The strong wind pushed at them. Flurries filled the air. Gabrielle saw she stood on a large stone bridge leading to a tall, closed drawbridge and portcullis. The twilight was deepending into dusk. There were no guards in sight.

The others came out of the mirror behind her.

“Fuck it’s cold,” Velkan said, leaning into Anna for warmth. The group had dressed in armor and protective gear, but not for a winter hike.

“Where are we?” Anna asked. “This place doesn’t look remotely familiar.”

“We might not even be in our world,” Carla said, swallowing around her shivers. “This could be some… pocket dimension or something Dracula made to hide in. Or we could just be on the other side of the world. Who knows?”

“But if he can get here, why not just leave Transylvania entirely?” Anna asked.

“That’s why I think it’s not our world,” Carla replied. “If it were just a pocket dimension or something, he’d be able to hide here for a time, and return to take what humans he needed. But it wouldn’t be a full escape.”

“So what do we do about the drawbridge?” Velkan asked, staring up at it. They hadn’t brought rope or anything to cross something like that.

“Anna, put your arms around my neck,” Gabrielle said.

“…What?”

“Just… do it. …Please.”

Anna raised an eyebrow and wrapped her arms around the taller woman’s neck. Gabrielle reached out, grabbed Velkan and Carla by their collars, bent her knees, and leapt, making the others cry out in alarm. Gabrielle easily vaulted up the sides of the drawbridge and up through the open guard window at the top, and leapt back down to the ground in the large inner court area. She let go of Carla and Velkan and Anna slid off her back.

“Well that was a bit alarming,” Carla added as Gabrielle stumbled forward, breathing heavily.

“Gabrielle?” Anna asked.

Gabrielle growled in response.

Anna stayed back.

After a moment, Gabrielle stood up, and wiped her brow. She turned to look at them all, her expression full of remorse. “I’m sorry. I…”

“We’re getting close to the deadline,” Velkan said.

“We don’t have time to waste, then,” Carla said. “We should split up. We’ll cover more area that way. This place seems large.”

“Velkan and I will go find Ursa,” Gabrielle said. “You and Anna go look for the cure.”

“I should…” Anna hesitated.

“It’s all right,” Velkan said. “Gabrielle doesn’t trust me. She’s right.”

“What!” Anna glared at Gabrielle.

“The sooner you find the cure and find us, the sooner we’ll be together again.”

“I’m not going to murder him when we’re out of sight,” Gabrielle said. “And I need you to keep Carla safe.”

“Much appreciated,” Carla said.

Anna looked between them all, huffed, and said, “Fine. Don’t _die_.” She looked at the numerous directions they could take. “How do we know where to go? You could just as easily find the cure while we find Dracula.”

They heard a ghastly wail.

“That was Ursa,” Gabrielle said, looking off to their right. “We’ll head that way.”

A man walked into the room and stopped when he spotted them. He whipped around, but Gabrielle snarled and leapt on him, knocking him over and holding him to the ground.

"Wait!" Anna said, running forward. "Before you kill him, he can tell us where the cure is."

"I'm not telling you anything," Renfield said.

"Really?" Gabrielle said. She twisted the boot heel she had nestled on his throat. "Shall I tell you how I killed Aleera this morning?"

"I'm not afraid!"

"You should be," Carla said. "It wasn't pretty. Your master likely told you Gabriel was an angel. Have you ever wondered what it's like to be murdered like one?"

Renfield swallowed. His eyes darted away. He looked to one corridor off to the side. "That way. The office is that way. Not that it matters."

"You're right," Gabrielle said. She knelt down and lifted the man by his shirt collar, then covered his face with her hand. He cried out, muffled by her skin, and slowly dissolved. She released the bits of him left, dusting herself off. The others didn't say anything for a bit.

"...What if he was lying?" Velkan asked.

"He wasn't," Gabrielle said.

"And you know this because...?"

"Because I'm a fucking angel maybe, I don't know. I just know."

"All right," Carla said.

* * *

Renfield's instructions were helpful, and after knowing which corridor to choose, it was actually surprisingly easy for Anna and Carla to find what looked like a large library.

“It makes some sense,” Carla commented, looking through the books. “It seems that Dracula never expected anyone to find this place. Why make it a maze if you just want to get to where you need to be?”

Anna went to a different shelf and looked around. “Surely he wouldn’t keep the cure in a book, though? If he needed to use it in case a werewolf turned on him, he’d want it ready for use? Besides, he can’t exactly _make_ more of it. Unless he’s got a stockpile of angels.”

“For all we know, he might,” Carla commented. She looked around. “There could be another secret room, maybe. Or a lab of some kind.”

Anna looked around. The library was quite large. She wandered around the shelves and found a half-hidden corridor behind a curtain and walked in. It was something of a laboratory, filled with various pieces of glassware, a cauldron, a desk… So she grinned and walked back out, saying, “Carla, I—”

“There you are, Anna.”

Anna froze as she spotted Verona holding Carla by her neck. Verona was still her in her more human form, wrapped in some silky whatever garment on, and wearing a wide, toothy grin. Carla was shaking, but she seemed locked in place. She met Anna’s gaze and Anna could tell she was terrified.

“Let her go, Verona,” Anna said.

Verona laughed. “But why would I do that? She smells so _wonderful_. I’m sure she tastes even _better_.”

Verona leaned over to sniff the skin on Carla’s neck.

And then Verona cried out and let Carla go as a crossbow bolt buried itself in her chest. Anna fired again.

Carla scrambled behind a bookshelf as Verona screamed and leapt into the air, quickly transforming into her normal vampiric form, with her ghastly bluish-green skin, sharper fangs, and wings. Bookshelves collapsed with loud crashes, scattering their burdens. Torches on the wall flickered.

Anna kept firing at her and Verona leapt around the room.

“Poor lonely little Anna,” Verona called as she leapt out of sight.

Anna looked around warily, searching for the source of the sound. But Verona didn’t say anything else.

Anna rolled when Verona came out of nowhere to land on top of her. Verona snapped down at the human, but Anna was away and up—

And Verona screamed out and fell forward, shaking as she dissolved, a damp stake all that was left behind.

Anna looked up to see Carla there, shaking. She’d snuck up behind them and stabbed Verona while she was distracted.

Carla blinked and said, “I never want to do that again.”

Anna huffed a laugh and lowered her crossbow. “You were amazing.”

“Lucky. Just lucky.” Carla sagged against the wall and brushed the sweat from her brow. “I hate field missions.”

“Come on,” Anna said. “I found something.”

* * *

“I hope they’re not torturing Ursa,” Gabrielle said. “For they’ve been screaming quite a lot for some time.”

The pair had made their way carefully through the castle, coming across more and more Dwergi, which they hoped meant they were close to the machine, which was presumably where Ursa was taken.

“Why build a second machine?” Velkan wondered.

“Perhaps they worried I’d come after them and wreak more havoc,” Gabrielle replied.

“No offense, but you’re just one person,” Velkan said. “What danger could you pose? Even if you are an… angel.”

“I killed Carmilla once upon a time. If Dracula has what he needs after all this time – Ursa – and knows I’m here, he’s smart enough not to take his chances. And likely one of these machines was the prototype, and if they rebuilt a better version, they’d have the prototype as a back-up.”

They kept to the dark corners, avoiding notice. When they finally saw the parts of the machine – with Gabrielle marveling a bit at the size of it – the Dwergi seemed too focused on their task to even notice the pair. The loud noise of the machine covered their movements.

They stopped when Gabrielle realized they couldn’t get much closer without attracting notice. They hunkered down, staring up where they knew Ursa was kept.

“Here’s the plan,” Gabrielle said. “I’ll make a distraction. You free Ursa and get out. I’ll follow you.”

“Dracula could be here.”

“Even better. They’ll pay more attention to me.”

“He’ll kill you. And if… if you change and become a werewolf, he’ll have control…”

“If we don’t get Ursa down in time, him having control of me is the least of our concerns. Be ready.” Gabrielle ducked away before Velkan could argue any more. Gabrielle darted down through the tower again, and finally got to an active spot of Dwergi. She knocked two off the catwalk, where they fell screaming to their deaths, shot two others, picked up a crowbar from a wall, and smashed it into a wall of machinery. Electricity crackled and the machine slowly died.

Higher up, Dracula froze, and turned. The shouts of the Dwergi were increasing, and more activity was happening below. He smiled as he smelled… something very familiar. He dropped down.

* * *

Velkan snuck up carefully as the Dwergi started heading down to Gabrielle. He had to pause and duck into a corner as a large group of them passed, then continued his journey up. He found the top, where Ursa was kept, empty of Dwergi. It was raining now. He knew Dracula was waiting for a storm, and this place was likely to have one any minute. Velkan looked over the manacles on Ursa’s arms and started undoing them.

“Who goes there??” Ursa cried. “Wretched vermin!”

“It’s Velkan!” the man replied. “I’m here to help. Please, be quiet!”

“Work quickly!”

* * *

Gabrielle knocked a third Dwergi off a catwalk and fired more crossbow bolts into a big chunk of machinery. She could feel moonrise, like a prickling at the back of her mind. She breathed through it, knocked another Dwergi aside, and rammed a hand into a wall of something mechanical.

She didn’t even wince at the pain. She looked at her hand. The skin was barely bruised, peeking through with red.

“So you return,” Dracula said as he floated down to her, landing on a nearby piece of catwalk. “Reconsidered my offer?”

“Never,” Gabrielle replied. “Just like I told Carmilla.”

Dracula’s smile widened. “So you remember? Or… you’re pretending?”

Gabrielle matched his movements, keeping the distance between them. “I remember I said no to her offers, too. Only I remember she wanted me to kill you for her.”

The corner of Dracula’s smile twitched. “Hardly surprising. She was afraid of my abilities.”

“I think she was tired of you and wanted someone new.”

Dracula snorted. “That’s beneath you, Gabriel. If only Mother could hear you now. But… perhaps She chooses not to listen? Is that why you’re human?”

Gabrielle scoffed and shrugged her jacket off. “You talk a lot for someone who’s just grasping at air.”

“Maybe I miss talking to you,” Dracula said, putting on a forlorn expression. “My best friend in the _whole_ world, who curses me and then up and tries to _murder_ me.”

“You were slaughtering people,” Gabrielle said. “And I tried to help you. To get you to—”

“Repent?” Dracula snarled. “Like a sinner, separated from the flock of noble sheep? Fuck you.”

“You want power, fine, I get it. So many humans do.” Gabrielle glanced behind her out the window. “And maybe in a way I can kind of understand. Humans are weak and fragile. And this…?” She cracked the knuckles of her hands and loosened her shoulders. “This is a bit intoxicating.” She could feel it settling into her bones. She could feel the pull of the beast.

“What are you talking about?” Dracula asked.

“I’m not going to let you unleash your evil on the world,” Gabrielle said, even as it got harder to breathe properly. “Even if they kill me for it.”

He frowned at her.

The change took her suddenly, like someone smacked her in the face with an iron chair. She fell to the ground, felt her muscles spasm, her heartbeat race…

Dracula cocked his head.

Gabrielle tossed back her head and roared as her jaw lengthened into a snout, her limbs grew, and fur coated her skin.

Dracula burst out laughing. “You were bitten! Oh, this is lovely!”

The werewolf that was Gabrielle stood back up on her hind legs and snarled at Dracula.

The vampire laughed again. “Just perfect. With you as my...” He frowned as Gabrielle advanced on him, then lunged at him. Dracula transformed into his monster form, limbs lengthening and wings forming at his sides, teeth sharpening into deathly fangs. He barely leapt into the air before the werewolf leapt at him and clawed him from the sky. As her claws sank into him, his flesh burned and he shrieked. They fell down and smashed into more Dwergi, and the crushed machinery groaned and crackled.

Dracula swiped at his attacker, knocking her away so that he could leap into the air. He roared at her from above. She howled back, leapt to the wall, then another, faster than he could follow. He tried to fly away to safety, but she leapt towards him, crashing into him and dragging him back down. He clawed at her, trying to break free, but she snapped back at him, punched his face, and then reached down and bit deeply into his neck.

The vampire _screamed_.

Up above, Velkan and Ursa were making their way down the stairs, and they froze at the unearthly sound.

Anna and Carla flinched at the noise, and then increased their pace.

Gabrielle pulled back, spitting out the rot from her mouth as she watched the vampire shrivel away and dissolve with a small, guttural cry. Gabrielle was breathing heavily, and she sagged down onto the ground.

The others found her there, lying on the ground, transformed back to her human form, her clothing torn, blood dripping from her wounds, her eyes shut.

“Gabrielle!” Anna and Carla ran to her and knelt by her side. Carla pulled out the syringe of cure they’d discovered, floating in a glass case beside Dracula’s notes on it. Velkan and Ursa stood to the side, looking on, shocked.

Carla injected Gabrielle’s left arm, and the woman made a soft murmuring sound, but didn’t move.

As Carla finally removed the syringe and sat back, they all watched.

Nothing happened.

“Give it a moment,” Carla said. “It has to circulate. Do its work.”

Still nothing.

“No…” Anna said, her hand tight on Gabrielle’s shoulder.

Gabrielle suddenly jerked and arched upward, crying out. A bright, golden light suffused her and the others put their arms up to shield their eyes.

“…For that?” a quiet voice eventually asked.

The light faded, and the group put their arms down. A tall, armored figure stood before them, in the very center of the debris on the floor. Dark brown wings lifted up from their back, then settled in place.

Anna looked around. Gabrielle was nowhere in sight.

“…Gabrielle?” Carla asked, looking at the figure.

The angel turned, reached up, and removed her helmet, revealing Gabrielle as she had been, before they’d begun the fight. Clean-faced and smiling, ever so slightly. Her eyes were golden, though, and golden letters in an unfamiliar script flickered, disappeared, and reappeared across her skin at random intervals

“Carla,” she said. “My best friend…” There was something odd about her voice now. It seemed to echo a bit, somehow.

“Gabrielle…?” Anna asked. She stood. “What happened?”

“You saved me,” Gabrielle replied. She smiled wider. “You said you’d find the cure. You did.”

“It worked?” Anna asked. She was crying now, and she didn’t know why. “You’re… You’re better?”

“Yes. The cure worked through enough of the toxin that what little I still received Mother was able to burn it out. I’m better.”

“Did you kill Dracula? That scream…”

“Yes. He’s gone.”

“Verona’s gone, too,” Anna said, smiling. “Carla took care of her.”

“With luck,” Carla said. “A lot of luck.”

Gabrielle smiled and looked to Velkan and Ursa. “It’s good to see you’re safe, Ursa.”

“You rescued me, you all did,” Ursa said. “Thank you.”

“Thank you Velkan,” Gabrielle said.

The man bowed slightly.

“I wish I could see you to somewhere safe,” Gabrielle said, looking back at Ursa. “But I think… with Dracula and his helpers gone…?”

“We’ll have to make sure all the eggs are gone, too,” Anna said.

“Would you also make sure that Ursa is given passage to somewhere safe?” Gabrielle asked. “Somewhere they wish to be.”

“I swear it,” Anna said.

“Thank you.”

“You’re leaving,” Velkan said.

Gabrielle nodded. “I have to. Mother and I… We have some things to talk about. We didn’t part on… very good terms.”

“What happened?” Carla asked.

“It’s… I disagreed. With how she interacted with humanity. I thought she wasn’t doing enough.”

“And now you think otherwise?”

Gabrielle laughed. “Now she has bigger problems and needs my help. She says self-sacrifice was enough to bring me back. It doesn’t solve why I left.”

“Ah,” Carla said. “Well, if you ever come back, the Order will surely take you again.”

She smiled. “I’ll remember, this time.”

They walked out of the castle together, all the mortals watching Gabrielle with some awe. The Dwergi hid away from them.

“I’ll start cleaning that place out,” Velkan said as they returned through the mirror and back to Dracula’s first castle. “See if we can destroy the spells on it, so no one ever goes back.”

“Maybe there’s something in one of the libraries here,” Carla said. “Maybe even in Dracula’s library. Ursa could help me research it… If you want to, Ursa.”

“I’d be happy to,” Ursa said. “Once the vampires are cleaned out.”

They stepped out into the open. Velkan peeled off to go talk to their troops, waiting in the nearby woods. The moon was high. Gabrielle glowed in the dark.

“I guess we won’t go to the sea, after all,” Anna said, quietly, looking up at Gabrielle.

Gabrielle turned to her, and there was a sad expression on her face. “No. I guess we won’t. I’m sorry.”

Anna shook her head. “I’ll see it. Someday.”

“You will,” Gabrielle said. “And it’ll be beautiful. Or perhaps just smelly.”

Anna laughed. “You’re too pragmatic.”

“I’ve been on too many sea voyages.”

Anna shook her head. “Never change. …I’ll miss you. You’re a good comrade. And… and a friend.”

Gabrielle stepped towards her and reached out, wiping a tear from Anna’s cheek. “I wish I could stay.”

She reached out and clasped Carla’s hand. The rabbi was sniffling, quietly.

Gabrielle nodded at Ursa, who nodded back. Then Gabrielle looked them all over. “My friends. May you find peace. And glory. And success in all you do. Thank you.”

Anna pushed forward and kissed her on the cheek.

Gabrielle blinked as Anna pulled back.

“Visit,” Anna said. “You’re immortal, you’ll have time.”

Gabrielle smiled. “I will. I swear it.”

“Good.”

Gabrielle let go of Carla’s hand and pulled her helmet back on. She stepped away from them, walked a few paces away, crouched, and then leapt up into the air. Her wings spread out and pushed her upward. And in a burst of golden light, she was gone.

“…The Order will never believe this,” Carla said as they watched the light fade.

“Ah, what’s that on the ground?” Ursa asked, pointing where Gabrielle had been standing.

Carla looked down, frowned, knelt, and picked up…

“A feather,” Anna said. “From a… very large bird.”

“I wonder if it has magical properties,” Carla said. She frowned. “Probably a bad train of thought anyway. I’ll figure out a story.” She cradled the feather. “Well… It’d be interesting, anyway. Something to remember her by.”

“For all you’ve both done,” Anna said, looking back up at the sky. “I don’t think we’ll ever forget.”


End file.
